After a decade of a heavily sedentary lifestyle I decided to get my life in order and take up running. These are my stories as I run farther and faster in my 30s than I ever have before.

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

What I Drank Wednesday 2: Electric Boogaloo

Yes, I'm finally back for another What I Drank Wednesday. I've held off since I haven't done anything exciting drinking-wise for awhile. What changed? Well I ran a race in Wisconsin so of course I had to bring home some delicious beverages. I also happened to volunteer at and then partake in the American Beer Classic at Soldier Field.

5/3 - Kenosha, WI - Level of Difficulty: Brat on a Pita?
After all the post race fuss I finally sat down with Anne and her husband Bob and we enjoyed our post race brat, which happened to be served on a pita and a small cup of Hazelnut Harvest from Rustic Road Brewery. The beer was OK. It was full of flavor and perhaps a bit to heavy to be drinking post race. If it were a hot day I probably would of gagged. There's just something refreshing about wheat beers post race. After further shenanigans we made our way to the actual brewery for round 2,3,4.... How many Anne? I only had another beer since I had to drive back to the city afterwards. I opted for the Creme Brulee Sweet Vanilla Stout. It was full of wonderful flavor and a bit on the strong side. It came in a snifter though so I didn't have to worry about overdoing things. I soon left, but stopped to pick up some beer on the way home.

5/4-5/8 - Eric's Place, Chicago - Level of Difficulty: How do I use this Untappd thingy?
So on Sunday I finally joined that social drinking application called Untappd. I quickly added friends and got to work. If I forgot to you I apologize, but feel free to add me. I started with my prized possession from the Wisconsin trip - Spotted Cow from New Glarus Brewery. Its been a few years since I last had it, but it did not disappoint. The beer is just light and refreshing and great tasting. OK so I lied earlier, this is the beer I want at the finish line of my races.

The rest of the week I made progress on the Lakefront Brewery sample pack I picked up which included:
Klisch Pilsner
Fixed Gear Red Ale
Riverwest Stein Beer
IPA
Fuel Cafe Stout

5/9 - Friar Tucks, Chicago - Level of Difficulty: Funny Hats
If anyone is familiar with Friar Tucks then you know it is a casual dive bar on Broadway that has a box of funny hats. They are welcoming to regulars and new comers alike. I've been there for trivia night several times and have always enjoyed myself. Don't forget to ask about the birthday special shot. Anywho, I digress, I wound up at Friar Tuck on a date after we decided to continue things after getting ice cream at Bobtail. I wound up sticking to the special which was Shiner White Wing. It's not one I've had before, but I've learned that it's hard to go wrong with anything that Shiner makes.

5/10 - American Beer Classic, Soldier Field - Level of Difficulty: All the beers!
I wound up volunteering to work the ABC since we were promised free admission to the night session if we did. Sold! It also helped that Mo was also volunteering so I'd have one of the Wurst running buddies ever with me there. I wound up helping out at the Ommegang tent pouring beers like no one's business. Sadly I had never had their beer before so when people asked what was my favorite or about the Game of Thrones beer that they were offering I had to reply that I, like Jon Snow, know nothing. That would soon change.

Once the shift was up and a quick refueling at Potbelly we were back at the stadium and ready to have our turn enjoying the beers. Since we worked the afternoon we knew which breweries were there and had a strategy in mind. OK so mine was basically that I needed to get the Take The Black Stout and also the Not Your Father's Root Beer. We hit the tents fast and furious. I was already feeling things a half hour in. I told Mo if this kept up that I might try to make snow angels on the 50 yard line. I did survive, but was probably as drunk as I had been in awhile by the time things were all said and done.

For those keeping track - that was 31 unique beers in about 10 days. Most of it was on just the one day, but still. And yes, I still made it to meet up with my Ragnar team for Brunch on Sunday. There was no hair of the dog.

6 comments:

That's pretty impressive for 10 days :) My, what a good influence the WRCE is on everyone's beer habits. And uh.... Rachel and I lost count at Rustic Road, though I think Bob and I tried everything on tap between the two of us.